For many parents and babysitters, changing an infant's diaper can sometimes prove to be a difficult task. As is indicative of many infants, an infant, typically, will not remain still during a diaper change. If capable, he or she will struggle to sit up or roll over, possibly due to a suddenly new found interest in a toy or other object, thereby making the task of diaper changing a multiple-hand challenge. For instance, one hand is needed to hold the infant in a secure position while one or more hands are needed to remove and replace the diaper. Because most individuals do not have the dexterity to perform such as task, the infant is often not safely secured on a changing table or the like. As a result, the individual changing the diaper must maintain constant supervision and attention to the infant. Injuries to the infant can occur when, during the diaper changing process, the individual is briefly interrupted by a phone call, doorbell, another child or some other distraction, thereby causing the individual to leave the infant unattended. Because most diaper changing tables are raised several feet off the ground, an unattended infant can, in a short period of time, tumble off the table resulting in severe injuries to the infant.
In an attempt to overcome some of these problems and deficiencies, straps and other mid-body restraints have been disclosed wherein the infant is partially held into position on the changing table. Examples of such devices may be found by reference to DePuy (U.S. Pat. No. 2,846,700), Hamann (U.S. Pat. No. 4,205,669) and Griffin (U.S. Pat. No. 4,216,951). The DePuy patent discloses an infant dressing table having a pad and a restraining strap extending therethough for strapping around an infant's mid-body. This device is disadvantageous in that it fails to adequately secure the infant. For instance, the infant's hands are free to manipulate the single strap and thus possibly maneuver out of the device. In addition, depending on what portion of the infant's mid-body the strap is placed on, the infant, if capable, can sit up and/or move its lower body, thereby making it more difficult for the diaper changer. The Griffin patent, similar to the DePuy patent, discloses a changing table having a pad and a mid-body belt. Additionally, the Griffin patent incorporates a roll of paper extending over the surface of the table for use as a sanitary surface. As in DePuy, Griffin does not adequately secure the infant on the table. The Hamann patent discloses a diaper-changing aid having an arcuate soft yieldable material that extends across the infant's chest. Additional straps are provided at the lower portion for securing the infant's feet. Although the Hamann patent better secures the infant on the table as compared to DePuy and Griffin, Hamann too has many disadvantages. For instance, the Hamann device is bulky and thus not easily transportable. In addition, because it is typically necessary to lift the infant's feet and legs during the changing process, feet restraints are disfavored. Similar to the Griffin and DePuy patents, with the Hamann design an infant is still capable of manipulating the restraining device thereby, possibly escaping and falling off the table. It is readily apparent that an improved infant restraint system for use on or in conjunction with diaper changing tables having means for adequately and comfortably restraining an infant during a diaper change is needed. It is, therefore, to the provision of such an improvement that the present invention is directed.